Class Pay Gap Day

November 14 marked the day when people from working class backgrounds started working for free

PROFESSIONALS from working class backgrounds earn an average of 13% less than their peers from more privileged backgrounds, research by the campaign group Department for Opportunities has found.

People working in higher managerial, administrative and professional occupations whose parents did the same, earn an average of £51,460 a year.

That’s compared to £44,742 a year for those doing the same jobs, but whose parents worked in working class roles.

That’s a gap of £6,718 a year, or 13%.

This means that they effectively work 13% of the year, nearly one day in seven, for free.

Or, to look at it another way, it makes November 14 the 2022 Class Pay Gap Day - the day in the year when professionals from working class backgrounds cease earning in comparison to their peers from a professional-managerial background.

The class gap is even more pronounced for women than it is for men.

On average, men in high-end jobs from working class backgrounds will earn £6,667 less than their more privileged male counterparts.

For women that average is £7,331. The class pay gap also varies by the type of job.

Chief Executive Officers from privileged backgrounds will general earn £16,749 more than those from working class origins.

Finance managers have a class gap of £11,427 on average. Management consultants have one of £8,863, solicitors have one of £8,115, and accountants of £6,261.

There are also regional variations to the class pay gap.

It’s at its largest in Northern Ireland where it stands at £8,537 a year.

London has the next largest gap at £7,713 a year. That’s followed by Wales (£6,703), the South outside of London (£6,532), the North of England (£5,896), Scotland (£2,848), and the Midlands (£2,276).